A man in his 20s who was arrested after threatening a woman he had previously lived with while holding a knife was released after a court ordered him to stay away from her and refrain from contacting her. Police had also requested that he be held in custody, but the court rejected the request.
The Cheongju Sangdang Police Station said on the 17th that the man, identified only as A, was booked without detention on charges of making threats with a deadly weapon.
The incident occurred at about 10:10 p.m. the previous day in Yongam-dong, Sangdang-gu, Cheongju. Police said A had been drinking and went to the home of the woman, identified as B, after she did not respond to his attempts to contact her. B was returning home at the time and was threatened in front of her residence by A, who was holding a knife. Police said A entered B's home using a door entry code he already knew and brought a knife from inside the home outside.
Officers who arrived at the scene after being notified apprehended A as a suspect caught in the act. Police then applied for temporary measures under the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Crimes of Domestic Violence, including orders barring him from approaching or contacting the woman (measures 1 through 3) and placing him in custody (measure 5). The court issued the orders barring approach and contact but rejected the custody request. Police said they took steps to ensure B's safety before releasing him and plan to seek an arrest warrant if A violates the court's orders.